Iran's president says Ukrainian jet unintentionally shot down, cites human error

Authored by cp24.com and submitted by WhateverSure

OTTAWA -- Iran's president acknowledged Saturday that an Iranian missile took down a Ukrainian jetliner on Wednesday killing all 176 civilians on board.

President Hassan Rouhani posted the news on Twitter early Saturday morning in Tehran, saying an Iranian military investigation concluded "missiles fired due to human error caused the horrific crash."

The admission came a day after Iran denied claims being made by Canada, Britain and the United States that Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was shot down by Iran, possibly accidentally. There were 57 Canadian citizens on the plane and 138 of the passengers were bound for Canada, many of them students and professors returning after spending the December break visiting relatives in Iran.

Rouhani said investigations will continue to "identify and prosecute this great tragedy and unforgivable mistake."

"My thoughts and prayers go to all the mourning families," he said. "I offer my sincerest condolences."

In a written statement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau acknowledged the grim news.

"Our focus remains closure, accountability, transparency and justice for the families and loved ones of the victims," he said. "This is a national tragedy, and all Canadians are mourning together. We will continue working with our partners around the world to ensure a complete and thorough investigation, and the Canadian government expects full co-operation from Iranian authorities."

Nadia Eghbali, whose aunt, uncle and eight-year-old cousin died in the crash, said it was hard to process all of her emotions after hearing the Iranian government admit that they accidentally shot the plane down.

"We're in complete shock, we're full of so much emotion. There's anger, there's so many things, we just don't know why this happened," said Eghbali. "At a time like this, they needed to stop all flights. It should have been stopped to prevent anything like this."

Nina Saeidpour, whose friend Kasra Saati died in the crash, said Iran's admission stirred up "mixed emotions." Saeidpour, from Calgary, said Saati had travelled to Iran over the holidays for a reunion with his wife and two children.

"In some ways we are happy that our government just came forward and said that they did it instead of hiding everything. On the other hand everybody is again in shock about why such a thing should happen," Saeidpour said.

There are 10 Canadian officials from Global Affairs Canada and two investigators from the Transportation Safety Board in Turkey waiting to get visas to enter Iran so they can both be part of the investigation and provide consular services to families of Canadian victims. Only two visas had been issued as of Friday night, said Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne.

He urged Iran to issue the visas quickly.

The plane's downing came hours after Iran launched missile attacks at two military bases hosting U.S. troops in Iraq. Those attacks were retaliation for the U.S. killing of Iran's top general, Qassem Soleimani, in an American airstrike in Baghdad on Jan. 3.

A military statement delivered on Iranian state television said the civilian airliner was mistaken for a "hostile target" when it turned toward a sensitive military site belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guard, an elite unit of the country's military.

"In such a condition, because of human error and in a unintentional way, the flight was hit," the statement read.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif still pointed some blame towards the Americans, saying on Twitter, "human error at time of crisis caused by U.S. adventurism led to disaster."

Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh told Iranian state television his unit was responsible for the accidental shootdown and said when he learned about what happened, "I wished I were dead."

Ukraine International Airline's senior executive said Iran should not have kept their civilian airspace open amid the hostilities with the U.S.

Airline vice-president Ihor Sosnovskiy said at a news conference in Ukraine the decision was "absolutely irresponsible."

"When you act in war then you act however you wish," he said. "But there must be protection around ordinary people. If they are shooting somewhere from somewhere, they are obliged to close the airport."

Transport Canada has warned Canadian air operators not to enter the airspace of Iraq or Iran due to the potential risk.

Ukraine's president said Iran must issue an official apology and pay compensation for the disaster. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine expects a "full and open investigation, bringing the perpetrators to justice."

A team of 45 Ukrainian investigators is already in Iran and Ukraine's Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said it was given access Friday to the flight recorders recovered from the plane's wreckage and recordings from air-traffic controllers.

The dead also included citizens of Iran, Ukraine, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Afghanistan and Germany. Champagne said Canada is leading the group of nations to advocate with "one single voice."

-- With files from Salmaan Farooqui in Toronto, Chris Reynolds in Montreal and The Associated Press.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 11, 2020.

NegativeCause on January 11st, 2020 at 04:25 UTC »

Imagine trying to leave Iran because you're worried a war is starting and then IRAN shoots your plane out of the sky.

pandas795 on January 11st, 2020 at 04:19 UTC »

I didn't expect them to actually admit it

erinadic on January 11st, 2020 at 03:57 UTC »

It's been confirmed; Statement Complete.

General Staff of Iran's Armed Forces: has issued a statement saying that the Ukranian plane was "unintentionally" hit by a military site & based on "human error". The statement has offered "apology" to the families of victims & foreign nationals.

Further more; While the plane was turning around, it went toward a sensitive military center of IRGC and it was at an altitude & in the shape of a hostile aircraft, in which the aircraft was inadvertently hit based on human error.

Iran's Armed Forces says "human error" happened while the sensitivity in Iranian air defense system had increased due to the threats of US president & officials & increased number of American aircraft around the country & receiving some reports on targets approaching strategic centers .Several targets were observed in some [Iranian] radars, which incited further sensitivity at the Air Defense units.

Fundamental reforms in the operational processes at the Armed Forces" will take place to "make it impossible to repeat such errors", saying the people who made the error will be introduced to Judicial Organization of Armed Forces to be dealt with legally.

The Turning Plane Claim (Correction): Under such sensitive and critical circumstances, the Ukrainian airline’s Flight PS752 took off from Imam Khomeini Airport, and when turning around (No explanation given as to WHY or IF the plane was turning around), it approached a sensitive military site of the IRGC, taking the shape and altitude of a hostile target. In such conditions, due to human error and in an unintentional move, the airplane was hit [by the Air Defence], which caused the martyrdom of a number of our compatriots and the deaths of several foreign nationals.

The relevant authorities at the IRGC were also instructed to appear on state TV and give detailed explanation of the incident as soon as possible.

Official Statement from The General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces

IRGC Linked - Tasmin News

My condolences to the victims and the victims families, I personally was hoping this wasn't true. I hope that victims compensation will be a generous one for the pain that's been caused.

Edit 11:54pm EST: Iran's President Rouhani expressed deep regret over the incident, calls it a disastrous error, offers condolences and sympathy to Iranian nation and foreign countries. "This painful incident is not something which can be left aside easily. The unforgivable error will be prosecuted calling the incident a "big disaster".

Edit: More evidence. 2:04am EST: Alleged Video of the SAM Launch resulting in a flash of light